Attack Against Shias Inflames Security Fears in Pakistan

The death of 84 people this weekend in a terror attack that targeted Shias in Quetta raises questions about the government’s ability to guarantee security – especially that of its minorities – as Pakistan approaches general elections in coming months.

The attack took place Saturday in an area of the city, the capital of Baluchistan province, inhabited mainly by ethnic Hazaras, who are overwhelmingly Shia Muslim.

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A spokesman for Lashkar-e-Jhangvia, a Sunni militant group, claimed responsibility for the attack Sunday. The group also claimed responsibility for an attack last month in the same city that killed nearly 100 Shia Hazara.

January’s killings sparked nation-wide protests after the families of those killed refused to bury their dead until the government responded to the deteriorating security situation. Families sat by the coffins of their loved ones in freezing temperatures in protest.

Islamabad bowed after three days replacing the sitting chief minister and provincial government with their governor. Paramilitary forces were also brought in to take over from the police.

Barely a month after the power reshuffle, another deadly attack has struck the community, with government and security forces declining to take responsibility for failing to prevent another massacre.

The recently installed governor, Nawab Zulfikar Magsi, was quick to lash out at intelligence and law enforcement agencies telling Geo TV, one of Pakistan’s largest broadcasters, that intelligence agents were “either too scared to go after the terror-mongers or too clueless to even know who they are dealing with.”

Mr. Masgi told Dawn, an English-language newspaper: “There is chaos everywhere and the state does not seem to be effective.”

The governor claims he gave a free reign to security forces to take action against militant groups since he took power of the province in January.

But critics say that Mr. Masgi needed to take the led in implementing changes, which he has failed to do.

The military could not be reached for comment.

“Governor rule may have come, but the administration is the same,” Qayyum Changaizee, the chairman of the Hazara Qaumi Jirga, told Al Jazeera, claiming that no additional security had been put in place to protect the community since the January attacks

Shia organizations are once again refusing to bury their dead until control of Quetta is handed over to the military.

Analysts have questioned why the Hazara community in Quetta is looking to the military to support.

“The military is already there,” said Retired Army General Talat Masood, “This is the responsibility of the civilian government.”

The Frontier Corp, a paramilitary branch of the Pakistan Army, has been stationed in Baluchistan since 2001.

The escalating violence against Shia, and particularly the visible Shia Hazara community, is the product of a complex history of links between the military and militant groups and a breakdown of civilian administration in Baluchistan.

The Pakistani military once backed Sunni groups and viewed them as strategic assets in the fight against Indian forces in disputed Kashmir. The security forces also saw the Sunni groups as a way to fight a proxy war to extend their influence in Afghanistan.

Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and other militant groups were banned by the Pakistan government over a decade ago under pressure from the U.S. after they led coalition forces in Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban.

But despite the ban, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi continues to operate openly throughout Pakistan, holding huge public political rallies. The location of the group’s training camps is an open secret.

“The national policy [towards sectarian groups] has not fundamentally changed despite some moves that suggest otherwise,” said Tahira Abdullah, a human-rights activist.

Pakistan’s delicate sectarian balance has tempered the response by the government and military fearing a backlash in other parts of the country, analysts say.

“It is a lack of political will,” said Gen. Talat, “The political structure is weak and they are failing to assert themselves.”

Gen. Talat said that it is up to the government to mobilize the military to go after the militant groups. “They didn’t set anything in motion,” after the January attacks, he said, “It’s just been more promises.”

Baluchistan does present the government with a unique set of problems. It is the largest province in area in Pakistan and is also the most sparely populated. It shares porous borders with Iran and Afghanistan and there it’s home to a simmering separatist movement.

Analysts also say that foreign fighters with the backing of Saudi Arabia and Iran operate in the province fueling sectarian divisions as they support Sunni and Shia groups respectively.

The government’s failing to address the situation in Baluchistan is part of it broader failure to address terrorism across the nation.

But there is disagreement on what steps need to be taken to address the alarming security situation. Mr. Amir says that Pakistan needs to withdraw from any alliance with the U.S., echoing the position that his party, the PML-N, has increasingly aligned itself with to capitalize on anti-American sentiment in Pakistan ahead of elections later this year.

Others say that weaknesses in the provincial governance structure needs to be addressed, but that in itself is a multi-faceted challenge.

“The solution requires a blend of intelligence work, military action and better law enforcement. It is just the will that seems to be lacking,” read an editorial in Dawn, an English language newspaper in Pakistan, Monday, hinting at the poor history of collaboration between the various elements that make up the power establishment in Pakistan.

The solidarity protests sparked by the attacks that targeted Shia Hazaras – although largely limited to urban areas – point to a positive shift in the public mindset, says Ms. Abdhullah, the activist.

Mr. Amir dismissed the protests saying, “Turning up at an Islamabad super market is not enough.” He also said that protests have been mostly led by Shia groups. Wider support within the Sunni majority of the country in lacking, he said.

In recent months, anti-Shia violence has reached its worst level since 1990s. Last year, 400 Shia were killed in targeted attacks. Since the beginning of 2013, 204 people have died in attacks in Quetta. The majority of the victims have been from the Shia minority.

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